Health-shoe.



L. ZERGA.

HEALTH SHOE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 8, I915.

1,173,696.' I Patented Feb. 29,1916.

THE cn UHXHA PLANOGRAPH 0).. WASHINGTON, D. c

- nnirnn sra'rns rarnnr OFFIGE.

, LALLIE ZERGA, F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR- OE ONE-HALF TO H. J. ROSEGRANT, OF PHILADELPHIA;PENNSYLVANIA.

HEALTH-SHOE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Feb. 29, 1916.

Application filed April s, 123152. Serial 1%. 19,353.

To all whom it may concern:

zen of the United States, residing at Phila delphia, in the county of Philadelphia. and

State of Pennsylvania,'have invented new and useful Improvements in Health- Shoes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements in health shoes, and has for its'obj'ect to provide an exceedingly simple and effective device of this character, whereby the arch of the foot upon which the shoe is placed will be held in place in its'natural position, and will provide an easy and flexible support thereof, and having sufficient elasticity to give with the spreading of the foot when the weight of the body is brought to bear thereon.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a shoe of the class described embodying an arch support having sufficient flexibility to conform to the different shapes of the foot, and which will not cause the wearer pain or inconvenience.

With these ends in view, this invention consists in the details of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth and then specifically designated by the claims.

,Inorder that those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains may understand how to make and use the-same, I will describe its construction in detail, referring by numeral to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this application, in which Figure 1, is a side elevation of a shoe made in'accordance with my improvement, showing by dotted lines the position of the arch support and the ordinary counter. Fig. 2, is a similar view showing a slightly modified form of my invention, a portion of the leather and the outer lining being broken away to plainly illustrate the con-' of the inside portion gion ofthe'archf In carrying out my invention as here embodied 2 represents a shoe constructed in the ordinary manner and comprising a sole 3, vamp 4', upper 5, counter 6, outer lining 7 and inner lining 8.

In that form of my invention as illustrated in Figs. 1. and 3 I place an elastic arch support 9 between the inner lining 8 of the shoe in the reand the vamp 4,. or between the inner and outer linings on the inside of the shoe, considered relatively to a pair of'shoes'when placed upon the'fe'et, and the upper'and lower ends oredges are secured to the sole and upper of the shoe at the same time the parts'are fastened together, and preferably by stitching as indicated by the reference numeral 10. The-two.longitudinal'edges of this support which are made from suitable elastic material are left free, and when beingfastened in place is held under a slight tension or is slightly expanded. Ihis supporter is positioned in the region of the arch and preferably overlaps a small portion of the counter 6 which is constructed in the ordinary manner from leather or other suitable andsimilar material. The supporter when formed from elastic material and attached to the upper of the shoe at two opposite en ds of the supporter has a tendency to draw the points where it is attached, to ward each other, but when the shoe is fastened upon the foot, this action causes the shoe to snugly fit the foot in the region of the arch, thereby properly supporting the foot at the weakest point, preventing undue strain thereon and properly holding it in its natural position, but permitting the free movement or spreading of the foot while walking, so that'the wearer will feel no ill effects. By the use of my improvement, the exceedingly hard and stiff counters and metallic braces are entirelv eliminated, and as is well known the rigidity of such devices is very harmful to the feet, and often causes more ill than good effects.

In Figs. 2 and 4, the supporter is of greater length than that illustrated in the other figures, and runs from the sole to the instep of the shoe, this upper end which terminates at the instep being secured to the upper of the shoe by the same stitching 11 which attaches the button hole strip 12 be held in their natural position, gently but firmly holding the arch and instepto prevent sagging, breaking or other deformities in the region of the arch of the foot.

It will be seen that the construction of my device does away with casings, covers, insoles Or other objectionable elements which are generally used in manufacturing arch supporters, and the supporter does not run entirely around the foot which is objectionable to the wearer. The supporter is less likely to wear out or deteriorate because of its'situation or position in the shoe, there are no unsightly protuberances, and it is not separate from the shoe therefore not making it difficult to place upon the foot. In fact, a shoe made with my improvement has .allthe appearances of the ordinary shoe. V t

Of course I do not wish to be limited to the exact details of construction as herein shown, ,as these may be varied within the limits of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus fully described 'my invention, what I claim as new and useful, is-

1. As an article of manufacture a'shoe,

and an arch support forming a part thereof, said archsupport cons sting of an elas- Copies of this patent may be obtained for tie band secured under tension at its upper and lower ends to portions of the shoe in the regionof the arch. V 2. As an article of manufacture a shoe, and an arch support forming a part thereof, said arch support consisting of an elastic band secured under tension at its upper and lower ends to portionsof the shoe in the region-of the arch and on the inside portion thereof, considered relatively to a pair of shoes.

I 3. A health shoe comprising a sole, a

vamp, an upper, and a; strip of elastic material adapted to'act'as an arch support securedunder tension to vthe points of connection of the sole withthe vamp and the vamp with the upper.

4. A health. shoe. comprising a sole, a

yamp, an upp er ,--anda strip of elastic ma terial adapted to act as an arch support 7 secured under tension at its lower and upper edges at the points of the connection of the sole with the vamp and the vamp with the upper, in the region of the arch;

5; A health shoe comprising a sole, a

vamp, an upper, and a strip of elasticmar terial adapted to act as an anch supportsecured under tension at its lower and upper edgesjat the points of, the connection of the sole with the vamp and the vamp with the upper, in the region of the arch, the two opposite remaining edges being free.

6. A health shoe comprising a sole, at vamp, an upper, and an elastic strip adapt ed to act as an'arch support situated in the region of the instep on the inside portion of the shoe. having its upper end secured thereto in the region of the instep and its lower end secured to the shoe at the point of connection between the vamp and sole.

7. A health shoe comprising a shoe of ordinary construction having an elastic, hand secured under a slight tension on the; inside portlon of the shoe between the lin-,

ings at the point of connection between the sole and vamp and vamp andup'per;

8. A health shoe comprising :1 shoe of ordinary construction having an elastic band secured under a slight tension on the five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

